08/05/2020
We are so naive when it comes to sin. We think that we can easily recognize it, when in fact our greatest sins are often those we lift up to ourselves, and others, as being our most magnificent accomplishments of faith. Things like the pride we take in a healing prayer when in fact it was God’s hand that did the work, and our feeling of self righteousness was merely an attempt to steal his glory... even when we outwardly praised Him. So many sins come encrusted in the sweetness of sugar, or a shining gold plate, when in fact it is sour bread, or crude metal underneath.
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?””
Genesis 3:1 ESV
We aren’t always aware of our sin, and if not careful we can actually tend to it as if it were the good bounty of salvation when in truth it is nothing more than a weed... sown in our field without our knowing, or understanding. How sad it would be if we were to walk with God through our best field during harvest, with our chest puffed up, only to be shown the hidden disease that had ruined the crop we thought was our glory.
“but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.”
Matthew 13:25-26 ESV
So often we think that the harvest of souls we witness as we pray over them have come to faith by our efforts when they have only been given to us for safe keeping. Jesus didn’t claim responsibility for his disciples. He never presented them to God as examples of His own pious efforts. No, he said something quite different when He spoke of them. He said they were given to Him as part of God’s will, and that it was also God’s will that He hadn’t lost them.
“And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.”
John 6:39 ESV
In this same way we present the Word of God, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but souls are saved, redeemed, comforted, provided for, and healed, by God who sends them to us... we don’t save these souls any more than the ink on the pages of a bible... we simply deliver the message, and God does the rest. It was the same with Jesus.
“I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.””
John 10:28-30 ESV
Our Lord loved , taught, and made the will of God known to His disciples... in this way he gave them eternal life through the Word of God, and the rest came through God’s will, and for His glory; even when The hand of Jesus and the Father were considered one hand it was God who’s Will was done.
“And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.””
Luke 22:41-42 ESV
Our hearts reveal our sins, but our minds can mask them, and justify them. This is the subtlety of Satan, and the way of the world that he presently inhabits. He is the father of all lies, and when we deceive ourselves we allow him to become like our father.
“You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
John 8:44 ESV
So, we must be careful when we pray, and always pray for God’s will to be done in our lives, and those whose lives we have been given. We should pray that God not only forgive us the sins that we know we have committed, but those we commit unknowingly... and even those that entrap us by neglect, when God has shown us His will, and we have committed sin by omission. Pray also that that our eyes are opened to the sin that we have rationalized, wrapped in fine garments, and adorned with gold so that on that faithful day it won’t be our stumbling block before the throne of judgement.
“Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.”
Acts 3:19-21 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for your Word, your Son Jesus, and your Holy Spirit that reveal our sins to us, and then lead us from them. Thank you for your forgiveness when we confess, are truly contrite, and ask that you forgive us in the name of your Son. We are your children Lord, and placed in this world for a season. We are given to Jesus, so that we will not be lost, and yet Satan is relentless in his lies. Open our hearts, our eyes, and our minds so that we can see him for the devil he is, and keep us through discernment from accepting as truth the false righteousness he presents us. Keep us safe in the arms of scripture, the grace you offer us through Christ, and the understanding of your Holy Spirit. Hear us as we praise you always, and give all glory to you as we obey your will. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God of truth, who is our Father, and our Lord. Greater are you than he who is in the earth, and more worthy of our praise than even our own selves that Satan attempts to present to us wrapped in a false narrative, and twisted scripture. Praised be your name for every revelation we receive regarding the sin we harbor within our piousness. Wise are you who gives us understanding, and shows us the fallacy of our taking pride in the things that are of you alone, and for casting a shadow upon the glory that is yours. Amazing is your grace that chips away the gold plate from the dull iron of our sins, and then forgives us, transforming us into pure and brilliant gold throughout. We sing your praises Father, and humble ourselves before you. Let all we do be governed by your will, and as we stand before you in final judgement let the white robe of Jesus be our only cloak... worthy, and bright, shining as the sun. Let our outward sins, and all of those which were once hidden within us, be washed away by the blood of Christ. We pray that on that day, and in this way, you will call us worthy, and take pleasure in us for eternity.
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Psalm 23:6 ESV
Rich Forbes